preserving basil

I don't know if this comes under recipes, but what's the best way to preserve basil for winter use without losing it's fresh flavour? I seem to have got carried away with the amount i've grown this year, and hate to waste it.

 

I've never really bothered preserving it since my plant just seems to go on and on, however ... I'd either chop it up and freeze it with just the tiniest amount of water in ice-cube trays or put some into oil (or vinegar), but for the bulk of it, I'd probably just dry it. According to 'the net' you can also preserve it in salt.

 

Work out how much you think you can possibly use.
Freeze that amount.
Get rid of the stuff you have no use for.
Make a note of how much less to grow next year.
Sorry for the blunt answer but that's the truth of it.

 

If you just put the leaves in a bag and freeze they are really easy to use. They get very brittle and you can just crumble them into what ever your are making. You need to be quick as they defrost in seconds. I freeze all my herbs this way and also spinach.

 

I freeze parsley and coriander in bags but i had it in my mind that if you do that with basil if goes black when it defrosts.

 

Don't defrost it Charly. Frozen Basil (and other herbs) are only good for cooking with. Just add the frozen herbs to the cooking pot. The flavour will be fine - and no there will be no black bits.

 

yep basil - chop - freeze quick on a flat tray - then stick in zip seal bag - use results crumbled into winter cooking - my favourite is crumbled into canned tomato soup - but tastes fresh in any recipe. I also freeze home grown mint & dill this way. thanks for reminding me to do some this year too!

 

OK, so let it defrost and it goes black, but put it straight into hot liquid from frozen and it stays green, Thats good to know.
Thanks everyone for your replies